Steel is used in many industries because it is a high strength material. To improve the qualities of steel, coatings can be disposed on steel. For example, cadmium coated steel is a material used as aircraft components for aerospace and military applications in humid environments. Cadmium coatings are referred to in the industry as a ‘sacrificial coating’ because cadmium protects steel from the humidity and degrades slowly. Other technologies are being developed to provide other coatings. For example, low hydrogen embrittlement Zinc-Nickel (LHE Zn—Ni) (e.g., AlumiPlate™) coatings offer similar performance to cadmium coated aluminum. Aluminum is another alternative for coatings on aeronautical components. Aluminum coated steel is conventionally made by ion vapor deposition (IVD) of aluminum onto the steel. Alternatively, ionic liquid-based coating formulations have been developed to eliminate aqueous and organic solvents from coating formulations.
Nonetheless, there is a need for protective coatings for steel having reduced porosity as compared to coatings formed by ion vapor deposition and having a broader range of metals to be used in the protective coating, as compared to Zn—Ni plating. There is also a need for protective coatings for steel that can be formed without the use of organic solvents and other non-ideal materials.